


The seasons have changed and so have we

by katayla



Category: How I Met Your Mother
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-08-25
Updated: 2009-08-25
Packaged: 2017-10-05 03:26:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/37302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katayla/pseuds/katayla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lily and Marshall make a decision that affects the entire group.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The seasons have changed and so have we

**Author's Note:**

> This is [](http://jobiegirl6.livejournal.com/profile)[**jobiegirl6**](http://jobiegirl6.livejournal.com/)'s birthday present. Annie, you're one of my favorite people, online or off, and I hope you have a fabulous day. GO BREWERS!

It had been a joke, a way to keep Marshall from jumping off the building, but now Lily couldn't stop thinking about it. She wanted a baby. It was different than in the fall. Marshall was more established at work. And everything had already changed so much. Sometimes she and Marshall sat at MacClaren's for hours waiting for Ted to get back from his night class and for Barney and Robin to get back from whatever they were doing. It felt like the right time.

She told Marshall on a Friday evening in July. Their friends were out on dates, and they'd decided to spend the night in their air conditioned apartment.

"Baby, if this is a way to get me to have sex with you, I told you, it's too hot."

"For real!"

"Didn't we decide to wait?"

"That was months ago!"

Marshall looked at her suspiciously. "Are you _sure_ this isn't just to get me into bed?"

"I'm not _that_ desperate."

"Lily."

"Fine, but I'm serious."

And, suddenly, Marshall grinned. "Really?"

"Really!"

He took her hand. "Then I'd be honored to be the father of your baby."

"Good because if you said no, I was going to ask Ted."

"Hey!"

***

"No children!" Barney said. "That was the pact!"

"What pact?" Ted asked.

"The one we should've made! No babies, no wives, no girlfriends!"

"What about Robin?" Marshall asked.

"Oh, I'm not his girlfriend," Robin said. "I'm his partner in crime."

"What crime?" Ted asked.

"Public nudity, most recently," Barney said.

"Where were you--" Ted stopped himself. "So. A baby."

Lily nodded.

"That's great, you guys."

"No, it's not!" Barney said. "A baby means the end of everything!"

"Gosh, Barney," Marshall said. "Couldn't you at least fake happiness for us?"

"Fake happiness is for when you announce a pregnancy." Barney stared at Lily's belly. "You're not, are you?" he asked, his voice suddenly soft.

"No!" Lily wrapped her arms around herself. She hadn't really gained weight, had she?

"Good," Barney said. "Then there's still time to talk you out of it!"

"Barney," Robin said, and laid her hand over his. He shook it off. She sighed. "I'm happy for you guys."

"Thank you, Robin," Lily said.

But the rest of the evening dragged after that. Lily had pictured them celebrating together, imagined herself getting drunk (because who knew when her next chance would be?), and just having fun. Instead, Barney was grumpy and Robin was quiet and Ted overcompensated by talking at twice his normal volume.

When they got home, she and Marshall didn't even have sex. Which was unusual even when they _weren't_ trying to have a baby.

***

"It's none of your business!" Robin shouted. She and Barney were at his place and Barney was ranting about Marshall and Lily's announcement.

"Yes, it is!" Barney said. "They're going to ruin everything!" He paced back and forth in front of the couch.

"By having kids?"

"Yes! As soon as they have a baby, we'll never see them again!" And then Barney bit his tongue and looked away. "Besides, everyone knows kids aren't awesome at all."

"What about your nephew?" Robin asked.

Barney smiled. "He's pretty awesome."

"And, besides," Robin said, and then stopped. She wasn't sure where her boundaries were. She sucked at relationships and Barney sucked worst, and it's not like they'd even decided this was a relationship.

"You were going to say something sappy, weren't you?"

"Maybe."

Barney sat down next to her. "Do you think I could sneak birth control pills into Lily's food without her noticing?"

Robin smiled. "No."

Barney sighed. "I never should've let them get married."

***

"You know," Ted said to the brunette woman sitting at the bar. He'd started talking to her because she looked a little familiar, but maybe that was the fifth beer talking. "_I_ was the one who wanted kids."

"I want kids," the woman said.

Ted took another gulp of his beer. "Marshall and Lily have no right to have a baby before me!"

"Who are Marshall and Lily?"

"Barney and Robin will probably get married next and forget all about me." Ted looked down at his glass. "My beer is gone."

The woman smiled at him. "I'll buy you another one. Tell me more about how you want kids."

Ted took another look at the woman. She was pretty. "You know," he said. "I'm a professor."

"I like an intelligent man."

"I like women who like intelligent men." Ted smiled at her. He was pretty sure she wasn't the one, but he'd lost his wingman. He couldn't afford to be picky.

***

"I have made a decision!" It was the next night and Barney had just walked into MacClaren's. He slid into the booth next to Robin.

"Hey," Robin said to him.

"Hey," he said, and kissed her.

When they didn't stop after a minute, Ted said. "Guys? Guys?" He rolled his eyes. "They're worse than you two."

"We're not that bad!" Marshall said.

Lily just threw a spoon at them.

"Ouch!" Barney said, as he and Robin broke apart.

"Your decision?" Lily asked.

"Oh," Barney said. "You guys can have kids."

"Yeah," Marshall said, "because we were really going to listen to you."

"Do we need to go over this again?" Barney said. "All decisions must be run past the group." He swiped Robin's drink and took a sip.

"Barney!"

"I'll buy you another one!"

"I'm cool with it, too," Ted said. "It got me laid last night."

"Really?" Barney said. "How'd that work?"

"Barney," Robin said again.

"Relax, Scherbatsky. It's just for research purposes."

"Have you thought about names yet?" Robin asked. "Robin works for a boy or a girl!"

"I call godfather!" Barney said.

"I call godmother!" Robin said, and high fived Barney.

"Great," Ted said. "That means I'm stuck with being the weird guy you make your kids call 'Uncle Ted.' "

"I'm not even pregnant yet!" Lily said.

"You know," Marshall said, and looked at Lily. "You want to . . . ?"

"Gotta go!" Lily said, and the two of them rushed out of the bar.

"They just get less and less subtle," Ted said, and then turned back to Barney and Robin. Who were making out again. He sighed. "Why do I have a feeling this is going to be a really lonely summer?"

Across the bar, the brunette woman from the night before walked through the door. Her eyes met Ted and she smiled.

Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all.


End file.
